For three years, Nick Rumbelow flew under the radar a bit at LSU. Injuries stalled his emergence at times, and he always pitched on teams with somebody else who grew into the closer's role.

The New York Yankees saw something they liked, though -- at the recommendation of scout Andy Cannizaro ironically -- in the Texas native in 2012, and he is paying dividends.

In a whirlwind season, the 6-foot right-hander has vaulted from low Single-A to Triple-A and wasn't fazed by the moment in his debut at the highest level of minor-league ball in his debut.

Rumbelow logged 2 scoreless innings on Tuesday night for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Pa.) RailRiders in a 4-1 loss to the Syracuse Chiefs. He allowed one hit, walked a batter and struck out two.

That was in line with how Rumbelow has thrown every step of the way this season as he went from the Charleston (S.C.) River Dogs to the Tampa Yankees to Double-A Trenton.

Over the course of this season, Rumbelow has appeared in 35 games with a 5-1 record, 7 saves, 44.2 innings, a 2.01 ERA and batters are swinging at a paltry .182 clip. Perhaps the most impressive stat: Rumbelow has struck out 64 batters and walked only 14.

Cannizaro, who was hired last month as LSU's hitting coach and recruiting coordinator after 5 years as a Yankees scout, said Rumbelow's velocity (up to 97 mph) and power breaking ball (up to 86 mph) give him "true swing-and-miss stuff -- exactly the type of arm that (Yankees Vice President of Scouting) Damon Oppenheimer and the Yankees love."

In three years at LSU, Nick Rumbelow pitched in 70 games but never emerged in a set role out of the bullpen. His tenacity and skills caught the attention of Yankees scout Andy Cannizaro, though.LSU Sports Information | LSUsports.net

"Nick Rumbelow was the most competitive kid on the mound in my area," Cannizaro said.

"He had a Major League bullpen mentality, always attacked the strike zone, pitched aggressively with electric stuff that you find in the big leagues."

Rumbelow was teammates with fellow former LSU reliever Nick Goody in Trenton. At Triple-A, he has been reunited with Lafayette native and former Alabama star Taylor Dugas, who is hitting .308 for the RailRiders (.299 this season).

At LSU, Rumbelow appeared in 70 games in three years before New York drafted him in the 7th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft. He was at his best in NCAA Tournament play with 5 scoreless frames in 2013 and a 2.1-inning shutout stint against Oregon State in 2012.